


Take My Hand

by toxic_corn



Category: Firefly, Serenity (2005)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Crack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-12
Updated: 2015-12-12
Packaged: 2018-05-06 06:42:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5406917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toxic_corn/pseuds/toxic_corn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Why for do we gotta pick up more passengers?!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take My Hand

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly can't explain how this story came to be. One of the plot bunnies that bit me must've been a crack addict. I've been listening to the Lick the Tins cover of "Can't Help Falling in Love" so that's where the title comes from.

Take My Hand

 

“Why for we gotta pick up more passengers?” Jayne groused. “Anyone remember how well that went last time?!”

 

Mal paused in mid-step right there on the dock, making a woman with two children in tow curse him out in Chinese. “Were ya not there yesterday when Badger dropped our take down by ten percent? Huh. Coulda sworn you were. Cuz I seem to remember some behemoth mercenary harpin’ on it for the longest damn two hours of my life.”

 

“There ya go gettin’ all sarcastic again!” Jayne scowled. “Can’t a man ask a question 'round here without gettin’ a gorram tongue lashin’?!”

 

“Not when it’s you,” Mal said, flatly. He continued walking and had to dodge a Chinese man pushing a trolley full of luggage. “We pick up more passengers because we need the credits. Unless you want a dock in pay?”

 

“I ain’t sayin’ that,” Jayne said hastily. “It’s just, how we supposed to get work when we gotta babysit a bunch o’ tourists?”

 

“Because we’re just trippin’ on job offers now,” Zoe pointed out, raising her eyebrows at Jayne.

 

The man just grumbled to himself the rest of the way to the ship.

 

~*~

 

“Cap’n, this is Eric and Ditty Roman. They’re Browncoats, just like you ‘n Zoe!” Kaylee beamed, pleased with herself over her passenger selection.

 

Mal eyed the man and woman in front of him. Sure enough, they were wearing long, brown coats and had the tired yet defiant looks of Independents. They looked like a mother and son, the woman in her late forties, the man in his mid twenties.

 

“I’m Captain Reynolds and this here is _Serenity_.” Mal nodded to his ship. “Whereabouts you folks headed?”

 

The woman, Ditty, shifted her bag on her shoulder into a more comfortable position. “Olympus.”

 

“Can’t say as I’ve heard of it,” Mal said, frowning. He looked to Zoe who shrugged.

 

“It’s not far,” Ditty promised. “Just get me a map and I’ll show it to ya.” She nudged her son and indicated the bags at their feet. “This baggage ain’t gonna sprout wings ‘n fly on board themselves, boy.” Then she marched onto the ship like she owned it.

 

Quickly, Eric scooped the bags up, smiled sheepishly at Mal, and followed his ma on board.

 

“Seem like nice enough folk, sir,” Zoe observed.

 

“Uh huh,” Mal agreed. He had a strange feeling about those two, Browncoats or no.

 

“They better not get my share at chow time’s all I’m sayin’,” Jayne muttered.

 

~*~

 

Ditty had no trouble pointing Olympus out on the map. It was only ten hours from where they were now and Mal wondered why he’d never noticed it before.

 

“Got the coordinates set?” Mal asked his pilot.

 

“Yes, Captain,” River said, flipping switches.

 

“Shiny. I wanna be up in the air in ten minutes or so.”

 

“Yes, Captain.”

 

“Wish everyone else took my orders so agreeably,” Mal muttered. He headed to the mess where he planned on letting the new passengers in on the rules. Partway there, he could hear a somewhat hushed conversation, and slowed down to stand just outside the door.

 

“What about the Captain and the Companion?”

 

“They already know, they just haven’t acted on it.”

 

“But we could make them if-”

 

“No! We’re here for one reason and one reason only, got it?”

 

“Technically, aren’t we here for _two_ reasons?”

 

“Don’t get wise, boy.”

 

“Ma, come on, just let me give him a little-”

 

Mal chose to enter the room just then, attempting casualness. “Is there a problem, folks?”

 

Ditty and Eric started in surprise.

 

“Us?” Ditty asked. “Oh no, we’re fine.”

 

Eric nodded in agreement.

 

Mal let this slide but his suspicions of the pair grew.

 

~*~

 

River trusted _Serenity_ to fly herself for awhile as she set the auto pilot. After four straight hours of flight, she felt all tight and tense. What she needed was a good, long stretch right before supper.

 

She headed to the cargo bay, which was usually where she did her stretching. There was plenty of room and usually enough stuff stacked up for her to rest on and fairly quiet. Unless…

 

From her spot on the catwalk, she watched Jayne lifting his weights. She didn’t much like being in the same room with Jayne. He was always so unpleasant, though admittedly not nearly as antagonistic as he’d been before Miranda.

 

Sighing, she turned to go and collided with their new passenger, Ditty.

 

“Oh!” Both women exclaimed.

 

“I’m sorry, honey, I didn’t mean t’ startle ya,” Ditty said. “What’s our pilot doin’ out here anyhow?”

 

“I was just going to stretch,” River said, trying to find a polite way to walk around the woman blocking her path.

 

Ditty stayed right where she was and quirked a brow. “Was? You change yer mind?”

 

“Well, no, but…” She trailed off and glared down at Jayne, lifting away and completely unaware of his audience. Of all the times to decide to work out. He did it just to be annoying.

 

“What?” Ditty moved to River’s side and followed the direction of her evil look. “Ah. I see.”

 

River smiled politely and turned to leave but was brought up short by the woman’s next words: “Fine piece of male specimen, isn’t he?”

 

Was the woman _insane_? River boggled a moment. “Jayne?”

 

“Is that his name?” Ditty laughed. “Well, that’s unfortunate. He’s still nice to look at, though.”

 

“He is?” River had never really noticed. Understandable, since the last year or so her mind had been elsewhere. But now that Ditty pointed it out…

 

“Look how powerful his arms are,” Ditty said in a hushed tone, as if Jayne could hear them. “He probably wouldn’t have much trouble hauling a little thing like you around.”

 

River bristled. “I’m quite capable of moving around on my own, Mrs. Roman.”

 

Ditty looked surprised. “Oh, I wasn’t sayin’ you weren’t! Just that sometimes it’s nice to curl up in a strong man’s arms is all.”

 

River could think of only one instance in which a strong man had carried her, and that had been the captain. But that didn’t really count, did it? He was like a father figure and it wasn’t like she remembered it, being unconscious at the time.

 

Suddenly, watching Jayne’s muscles tighten and relax with each lift of the weights, she wished to be carried as if her ambulatory abilities were nil.

 

“I always liked the way sweat looked on a man, too,” Ditty added. “Never much cared for the smell of it, but the way a sweatdrop rolls down the side of a man’s neck? Mmm.”

 

Was the heating unit stuck on high again? Kaylee really should look in on that. Preferably now. River surreptitiously pressed a hand to her face in a vain attempt to draw out the excess heat.

 

Ditty sighed, softly. “Also, the man’s got pretty eyes. Like a perfect, cloudless day during the summer months. Know what I mean?”

 

“Mm hm.” River couldn’t recall ever looking into Jayne’s eyes before. Maybe she would at supper, just to see if Ditty was right about the color.

 

“Come on, girl,” Ditty suddenly said, tugging River’s arm. “Let’s go and do some stretches. I used to be a dancer myself but that was some time ago. Refresh my memory.”

 

Before she could protest, they were already clattering noisily down the stairs.

 

~*~

 

He really shouldn’t be doing this without a spotter. But Mal and Zoe were discussing where their next job was comin’ from and the doc was busy organizing his cotton balls or something. God forbid one of those should be outta place or nothin’.

 

Someone was comin’. Two someones. Sounded like the girl ‘n one of the tourists. Well, fine. Normally he didn’t want the girl anywhere near him, but if he could count on her to save his fine ass from Reavers, then she could lift a barbell off his chest. Which was lookin’ pretty soonish here…

 

“Hey, you look like you could use some help with that.” Someone lifted the barbell back into place. The guy passenger. Um…

 

“I’m Eric. Here, you could use this more than me.”

 

Sitting up, Jayne saw the boy was holding a water bottle. Eric wiped the mouthpiece on the tail of his shirt and handed the bottle over.

 

Jayne twisted off the mouthpiece, tossed it in the direction of the boy, and tipped the contents down his throat with loud gulps. He belched long and low then handed the empty bottle back.

 

“Obliged,” Jayne mumbled and set to toweling the sweat off his face.

 

Eric chuckled. “Well, I’ll be sure not to sit directly across from you at chow time.”

 

Jayne gave him a good long look. “You need somethin’, boy?”

 

“No. Well, I heard ya out here and wondered if I could get a turn.”

 

“Oh. Well, I s’pose ya could,” Jayne said grudgingly. “In a minute.”

 

“Sure.” Eric nodded and looked across the room to where the women were. “Now ain’t _that_ a sight for sore eyes.”

 

Jayne didn’t even look up from wiping the sweat off his bench. “Thought she was yer ma.”

 

The boy stared at him blankly a moment and then made a face. “Not her. I meant yer pilot. Brooke.”

 

“River,” Jayne said and frowned. “What about her?”

 

“What about her?” the boy parroted. “She’s a mouthful o’ sweetness, that’s what about her.”

 

“ _Her_? Crazy Girl?” He must’ve looked stunned, but he started laughing. “Yeah well, have at ‘er. Once she twists yer nuts off and bashes yer face in, don’t come runnin’ t’ me fer help.”

 

Eric raised his eyebrows. “Hey man, I’m only lookin’, don’t worry.”

 

“Why the hell would I be worried?” Jayne wished he could tell the kid to go piss up a rope but he’d pushed Mal enough today. Insulting their only cash resource wouldn’t be the smartest move he’d ever made, not that there were many to his credit that he could name.

 

“If I lived with that everyday, I wouldn’t want competition either. It’s shiny.” Eric tilted his head to the side, taking in the view.

 

Curious, Jayne looked, too. The girl and Ditty were standing by a stack of crates, yammering. Then the girl raised her leg up over her head and leaned forwards onto the crates.

 

“Lookit those legs,” Eric breathed. “Probably could wrap around you twice.”

 

Jayne’s eyes narrowed. They did look long. And smooth ‘n creamy. Could rub his hand up ‘em ‘n-

 

Wait. What?

 

Before he could recover, Eric continued. “I like hair, myself. And that girl, your River? Has some damn fine hair. Could just bury your hands in that, pull it all up off her neck. Maybe breathe in the smell, some nice girly flowery shampoo…”

 

When did his pants shrink? Jayne shifted uncomfortably, wishing the kid would shut up and go away so he could ogle in peace.

 

“But what I like most is-”

 

The woman said something and the girl giggled.

 

“Aw. That right there. Gigglin’. ‘Specially once you’re goin’. Judgin’ by that girl’s flexibility, you could get goin’ to lotsa fun. So, can I have a turn?”

 

Jayne was jarred out of his pleasant yet disturbing fantasy. “Huh??”

 

Eric looked at him innocently. “The weight bench. You were done, weren’t you?”

 

Ruttin’ hell. Disgustedly, Jayne balled up the towel and stood up, trying to hold it in front of him. “Yeah, hell, go for it.”

 

“Spot me?”

 

Another giggle floated over and socked him right in the groin.

 

“No, I- I… justrememberedIgotsomestufftodoseeya!” Jayne sprinted away as fast as he could.

 

He needed to be in his bunk. For a long time.

 

~*~

 

Supper was the usual protein mash that Kaylee tried to make more palatable than it really was. But Ditty and Eric complimented her on it so much that she blushed with pleasure. Seemed weird, their grub wasn’t any different from other transport ships who saw real food once every other leap year.

 

“So. What was your business on Persephone?” Mal asked, sounding more abrupt than he’d intended.

 

Ditty and Eric didn’t seem riled though, but smiled at him in a way he found really annoying.

 

“We’ve been touring the ‘verse,” Ditty answered. “Finding work here and there. We’re finally ready to go home.”

 

Mal’s eyes narrowed. “What kind of work?”

 

“Oh, a little of this ‘n that,” Ditty said dismissively. “What kind of work do _you_ get, Captain Reynolds?”

 

Jayne snickered but stopped at the look Mal gave him.

 

“Perfectly legitimate business,” Mal said curtly.

 

Inara cut in, giving Mal a warning look. “So, where else has your tour taken you, Mrs. Roman?”

 

As Ditty and Eric started relating some of their adventures, Jayne eyed River who sat directly across from him. She was a reader; did she know he’d spent the last ten minutes pleasuring himself to her image? Well, she wasn’t cuttin’ on him or looking at him like he was a pig or something so probably not.

 

He allowed his mind to wander back to his earlier fantasy. He’d had her up against a wall, those legs of hers wrapped around him and his hands cupping the backs of her smooth thighs. She’d been cooing and giggling and sighing his name that he’d-

 

“Jayne?”

 

Instead of River’s voice bringing him back to reality, it wove seamlessly into his fantasy world.

 

“Yeah, baby?” His tone was low, gravelly, lust soaked, and totally inappropriate for the dinner table.

 

The conversation came to a screeching halt as everyone stared at him in shock, except for Eric who seemed to be hiding a smile behind his napkin.

 

“What did you just call her?!” Simon demanded an octave too high.

 

“Yes, Jayne, what _did_ you just call her?” Mal sounded twice as dangerous as he looked. And that was a hell of a lot more dangerous than Jayne wanted to contend with.

 

“Didn’t mean to, my mind’s someplace else,” Jayne growled, feeling his face heat up, pissing him off more. He glared at River. “The hell do you want, anyway?”

 

River pointed at the water pitcher to his left. “Pass it to Eric.”

 

Grumbling, Jayne did so, and the conversation hesitantly picked up where it left off.

 

Jayne stabbed at his protein and looked up to find the girl watching him with a funny look on her pretty face.

 

 _Better be stayin’ outta my brain, girl,_ he thought, shoveling food into his mouth. _There’s nothin’ in here you’re gonna wanna see._

 

~*~

 

Ditty was right: Jayne had pretty eyes. She didn’t know about them looking like the summer sky, but the color reminded her more of her favorite pillowcase from childhood. Its blue had been the softest and she’d loved cuddling it close both at night and in the morning watching her favorite cartoons. But then one of the new maids accidentally bleached it in the wash. River had cried her heart out and the maid had been let go. Her parents offered to get her some dye to try to restore her pillowcase but they had never been able to find the perfect shade. Looking into Jayne’s eyes was like having that old comfort back again. She wanted to curl up and sleep while his soft blue eyes kept watch over her.

 

“And then we went to Higgin’s Moon,” Eric was saying. “Town by the name of Canton. The folks we were with needed to pick up a shipment of mud.”

 

River saw Jayne stiffen and watched the others stop eating. Ditty was giving Jayne a kind look of sympathy.

 

“Your statue’s still up. They made another one for that boy who took a bullet for you.”

 

No one else noticed it, but since River had been looking intently into Jayne’s eyes for the last ten minutes, she saw the sadness there. She hadn’t been able to leave the ship when they were in Canton – which was fine with her because she clearly remembered the smell – but she’d heard all about Jayne’s folk hero status and all the trouble it had caused. The realization that Jayne still carried guilt over that young man’s death revealed hidden depths she never suspected Jayne possessed.

 

“Yeah, well.” Jayne kept eating and snorted. “Ruttin’ mudders.”

 

He left the table soon after.

 

~*~

 

Once again, Jayne was lifting weights. He was so full of frustrated energy that it was either lift weights or throw shit around his bunk, bellowing. This option meant he didn’t have to clean anything up later.

 

Stupid old biddy. Why’d she havta go and bring up that Hero of Canton _go se_? That stupid kid of hers better not come out here again or so help him…

 

“Jayne?”

 

He paused. It was the girl. Maybe he shoulda just pitched a fit in his bunk after all.

 

“Whatcha want?” he asked, putting some growl into it. Didn’t need her thinkin’ that “baby” business in the mess meant anything.

 

“I’m in need of your assistance.” The girl stepped into his line of vision. She really was a pretty li’l thing. For a still slightly crazy killer woman.

 

“With what?”

 

“There’s an arachnid in my boudoir.”

 

It took Jayne a second to make sense of this. “You can kill thousands of Reavers but you can’t handle a bitty spider?”

 

River’s eyes widened and Jayne was annoyed to find her alarmed expression adorable. Gorram girl.

 

“But he’s furry and moves like this!” She wiggled her fingers in the air, mimicking the spider’s unsettling speed.

 

Sighing, Jayne stood up. “Fine, where is it?”

 

She took him by the hand and led him to her room. He hoped no one – like her brother for instance- would peek out at them goin’ off to her room hand in hand and get the wrong idea.

 

“Over there,” she said once they were in her room with the door shut. She pointed. “Between my bed and the wall.”

 

Jayne climbed onto the little bed, feeling ridiculously large, and peered down into the space. There, sitting happy as could be, was a black spider the size of a half dollar. Christ on a cracker, no wonder the girl went and got him.

 

Keeping his eyes warily on the creature in case it decided to leap on his face, he waved a hand at the girl. “Get me a magazine or somethin’ and I’ll kill it.”

 

“Not kill it!” The girl crouched on the bed next to him, brown eyes big and alarmed.

 

He sat back and glared at her. “Well, what’d the hell you want me ta do? Come in here ‘n ask him all nice ta find some other room ta loaf in?!”

 

River sighed softly and her warm breath fanned over his face. He hadn’t realized she was sitting so close. As he watched, her cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink.

 

“Wait a tick,” Jayne muttered, putting two and two together. “That spider weren’t botherin’ you at all, was he?”

 

A smile slowly spread across her face and she shook her head.

 

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. Here he was all alone with the girl in her room. Part of him wanted to tug her into his lap, while the still functioning part of his brain wanted him to turn tail and run.

 

“Then what’d ya want?” Jayne knew he was asking a stupid question but felt like it needed to be asked somehow. What if he were wrong?

 

“Was curious,” she whispered, leaning close.

 

“Curious about what?” He was whispering too, since his throat had gone and dried up on him.

 

“Is your beard tickly?” Her mouth pressed against his in a sweet, almost childlike kiss. Too soon, she pulled back and touched her fingertips to her lips.

 

“Well is it?” he croaked.

 

“A little.” And she giggled.

 

Something snapped inside Jayne and he yanked her into his lap so she was straddling his thighs. She gasped in surprise but the sound turned into a moan when he kissed her roughly.

 

He knew he was going too fast and tried to slow down. As his left arm curled possessively around her waist, he lightened the pressure of his kiss by degrees and started to gently tease her mouth open with his tongue.

 

“Don’t kiss ‘em on the mouth,” she gasped, reminding him of his earlier words.

 

“You’re the exception to the rule,” he growled and curled his free hand into her hair, mouth slanting over hers.

 

It’d been awhile since he’d done any kissing, but River seemed happy with his rather rusty skills. Her arms twined around his neck and she kissed back hungrily, following his lead and picking up what to do with little coaxing. Her breath came in excited little pants. It felt nice to make her feel that way, made him feel about ten feet tall.

 

His arousal had been pressing into his fly since her tongue had first flicked experimentally over his own, but it went ten times harder when she started a slow grind against him.

 

He ripped his mouth away from hers, gasping for air, and nearly swooped in again for more when he saw her dilated eyes and kiss-swollen lips. He slid his hand down from her hair to her waist and tried to still her movements.

 

“Ya can’t… ya can’t do that, girl. You’re gonna get me kilt.”

 

She glared at him. “Gonna get _me_ kilt if you don’t let me…” She slapped his hands away and resumed grinding, palming his chest and moaning softly.

 

He panted and felt his eyes cross. “Girl come on, this ain’t-”

 

She slammed her mouth down on his to shut him up. Helpless to stop her, Jayne let his hands drift from her back to her front so he could fondle her breasts. She whimpered softly in encouragement.

 

“Mei-mei?” The doc knocked lightly on her doorframe.

 

River gave Jayne a panicked look, then called, “Don’t come in, Simon! I’m changing!”

 

“Okay. I just wanted to tell you that Mal wants you on the bridge. We’re almost to Olympus.”

 

“I’ll be right out.”

 

They waited until Simon’s footsteps faded away before they released the breath they’d both been holding.

 

Jayne was suddenly furious with the girl. “See?” he snarled, giving her a little shake. “That was me almost gettin’ dead!”

 

She stuck her tongue out at him. “You could take Simon in a fight.”

 

“Well, yeah. But then he’d run off ‘n tell Mal what we were doin’. Mal’s something else entirely, you know that.”

 

River frowned at him. “I’m eighteen years old, I should be able to choose who I want without fear of repercussions.”

 

His fierce expression softened. “You want me?”

 

She gave him one of her looks. “Do I need to draw you a diagram?”

 

He leered at her playfully. “Yeah, you do. I bet it’d be real educational.”

 

She giggled and cupped the side of his face as she gave him one last kiss before climbing out of his lap. He already felt lonely without her there and his fingers itched to pull her back.

 

Her smile was shy as she slid her door shut behind her.

 

Releasing a long breath, Jayne flopped backwards onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. He had to calm down, Mal would probably come looking for him too, soon.

 

What the hell were he and River doing?

 

~*~

 

“There aren’t any cities to speak of, so find a nice patch of grass to park on,” Ditty said.

 

River nodded. Olympus wasn’t all that big of a planet. The land was covered in a thick forest except for a huge mountain looming in the distance. She was glad to have piloting to focus on. When she’d entered the cockpit, the captain had looked at her oddly.

 

Perhaps she had a flashing sign over her head reading, “I JUST JUMPED JAYNE.” More likely, he was tipped off by her flushed face and puffy lips.

 

What in the ‘verse possessed her to attack Jayne like that? She hadn’t even meant to call him back to her room, but he’d been at his weights again and she wanted to make sure he was alright after all that talk of Canton at dinner…

 

The planet loomed closer and she happily cleared her mind to focus on the task at hand.

 

~*~

 

“Well, thanks for havin’ us on board, Captain Reynolds.” Ditty shook Mal’s hand firmly. “We’re much obliged to ya. Good luck in your uh, legitimate business enterprises.”

 

Mal nodded. He still didn’t trust the woman and was still waiting for the catch. Maybe her kinfolk would burst out of the trees any minute and try to steal the ship.

 

“Yeah, Captain Reynolds. Thanks.” Eric shook Mal’s hand as well and he felt an electric jolt.

 

“What the-!”

 

“Oops. Sorry.” The boy grinned. “Static electricity.”

 

Ditty looked at her son sharply. “Don’t just stand there with that shit-eating grin on your face. Get the bags.”

 

Eric bent and picked them up, looking resigned. “You folks sure you don’t want to stay a-”

 

“We best be on our way,” Mal said firmly.

 

“All right,” Ditty said. “’Bye all.” She and Eric started to walk away, but she pointed off to the left and called, “Look at how pretty the daisies look this year!”

 

Once they were out of sight, Mal heaved a sigh of relief. “Shiny. Let’s shut the doors and get off this rock.”

 

Inara looked at him in surprise. “Why are you in such a hurry?”

 

“Maybe because I-” As he turned to face Inara, his words stopped short. The way the sun was shining off her hair just invited a man’s touch.

 

“Mal?” Inara frowned. “What’s the matter?”

 

“Do you wanna go for a walk?” Mal asked, smiling.

 

Looking confused but pleased, Inara smiled back and accepted his extended arm.

 

~*~

 

After forty-five minutes, they were back in the sky, headed to one of the Rim planets to meet Monty. River was so engrossed in what she was doing that the sudden hand on her shoulder startled a small shriek out of her.

 

“Whoa!” Jayne stumbled back a step. “It’s just me!”

 

River took a deep breath. “Sorry, you surprised me.” She noticed he had both hands behind his back and looked at him questioningly. “Jayne?”

 

“I made somethin’ for ya.” Before she could ask what it was, he brought his hands around and presented her with a clumsily made daisy chain.

 

“It’s beautiful,” she said, sincerely. The gift was simple but it came from the heart.

 

“Yeah, I know it ain’t real fancy but I saw the flowers and…” He crouched down next to her and drew the chain over her head.

 

“Thank you, Jayne.” She engaged the auto pilot and swiveled the seat around to face him. “This is very sweet of you.”

 

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, well…”

 

River smiled. She wasn’t quite sure how this change in their relationship came to be but she liked it. Cupping his chin in her hand, she raised his face to hers and kissed him sweetly. Like before, the kiss got deeper and more heated. Jayne was practically in her lap trying to get closer.

 

Finally, they pulled apart to breathe. Jayne stayed close to nuzzle her neck, making her giggle.

 

“What are we doing?” she asked giddily.

 

“You’re sittin’ there all pretty and I’m smellin’ ya.”

 

Laughing, she gave him a playful swat. “Jayne.”

 

He pulled back to give her a serious look. “Don’t know, really. But I kinda like it.” He twisted a strand of her hair around one of his fingers. “Wanna stick with me ‘til we figure it out?”

 

She caught his finger, making him look at her. “Yes,” she said, staring into his blue pillowcase eyes. “Maybe even until after.”

 

~*~

 

As Ditty and Eric walked through the trees, the image of tired war veterans faded until all that was left was an ageless red headed woman and a golden haired young man with white feathered wings.

 

“Well. You got all your assignments done. For now.” The woman sent an amused look the winged youth’s way.

 

“It all would’ve gone faster if you’d let me use my arrows,” the boy said petulantly.

 

The woman’s amusement faded. “You abuse your power when you use those, son.”

 

The boy snorted. “ _You’re_ going to lecture me on abuse of power? That’s rich.”

 

“Even without your arrows, you’ve still stepped out of bounds,” she said, ignoring his remark. “I saw you zap Malcolm Reynolds when I distinctly told you not to.”

 

“It’s not going to hurt him.” The boy waved his hand dismissively. “It’ll make him treat the Companion a little better at least.”

 

The woman couldn’t object to this and they continued on through the forest in silence. Then the boy sighed.

 

“I’ll meet you up in the hall okay?” He flapped his wings and started to take flight, but with lightning quick reflexes, she grabbed his foot and pulled him back to the ground.

 

“Huh uh. If I’m walking, you’re walking.”

 

He grumbled. “You’re just as mean as that mercenary.”

 

“The girl will smooth out his rough edges,” the woman said with a smile. “I wish we could’ve stuck around to see that play out, though.”

 

The boy smiled too. “Well, Mother, we can always visit and check in with them.”

 

“That’s a good idea.” The woman looped her arm through her son’s and they finally emerged from the forest, where their mountain home welcomed them in its calm silence.

 

~*~

 

Three strange things occurred on _Serenity_ shortly after this episode.

 

1) Mal and Inara lost more of their animosity and became quite sweet towards each other. It made everyone a little sick, even Kaylee.

 

2.) Everyone accepted River and Jayne’s relationship without much argument. Simon went into shock for a few hours but everyone was of the belief that it wasn’t _real_ shock and the doctor was just being a drama queen.

3) Olympus disappeared off the map.

 

THE END


End file.
